The Blue Door

Chapter 4

Magical Basics

Cinder

I regretted leaving him as soon as I sat down, my palms itching to fill with fire. What was I thinking? Oh yeah, I was thinking I'd already cut enough school for the day. But he was another weaver after five years of being alone. I should have stayed and talked to him about magic until someone forced us to go to class. My eyes kept wandering to the clock, and my notes on cellular metabolism turned into a mess of scribbles.

I took a deep breath and forced myself to concentrate. I managed to pretend nothing new had happened, until the bell rang when I shot out of the room in search of Nick. I could skip art. I had the best grade in there anyway. It helps that I can weld without fear.

I must have wandered past Nick's locker five times. The crowd in the hallway thinned as everyone else made their way to their classes. I didn't see him at the table when I glanced out a door. I should have asked for his schedule. Would that have been creepy or normal in this situation? I didn't know.

The late bell rang. One boy ran past, muttering something about half the bathrooms being flooded. I spun in the empty hallway. With no choice but to go to class and wait, I headed off to work on my latest steel butterfly. It's six feet tall and fierce.

#

Nix

I made it to English moisture free. Liquid no longer stalked me through the halls or pooled around my pseudo-chucks. The best part, I could use the bathrooms again without urinal fountains or exploding sinks. I'd seriously been eying the bushes outside.

The pit-stop made me late, but I didn't lose participation points after all. My teacher either knew about the thing with Tommy and approved, or didn't want to pile more on someone who looked like death's best friend. I felt like I'd been palling around with the grim reaper too, shrinking inside my new jacket and fighting to stay awake through a lecture about yellow wallpaper.

I identified with the main character more than a little.

The fatigue grew each hour. I dragged myself from class to class. I don't think I've ever been so depressed either, and that's coming from the orphaned foster kid. It ached inside me, a longing for things lost and gone forever. Cindy did warn me, but she made it sound like I'd be hangry, not sad out of my mind and pining for dead parents. I doubt I learned a thing all day.

I dropped most of my books off at my locker after the final bell, relieved to be done with them. I made my way through the crowds and plopped myself down in front of the cougar statue in the courtyard.

Despite my fatigue, my adrenaline spiked when Cindy rounded the corner. I resisted an urge to jump up and run to her. That would've been weird, right? I'm not a run in slow motion across a beach toward a girl type of guy. I'm also not a hugger, which is what people usually do when they run to one another like that. Instead I smiled as I stood and slipped on my ill-gotten jacket. "Hey, how was Biology?"

"All good. We've been learning about ATP synthesis. It's fascinating!"

"Of course it is." I shrugged at her. "Cellular rocket fuel and all."

She stopped and stared at me for a second or two. "I'll have to remember that you're quicker than you play at sometimes."

I held out my hands in a display of innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about."

She ran a finger across her heart. "Don't worry. Your secret is safe with me. Who would believe me anyway?"

I chuckled. "Thanks for the vote of confidence. There are a few teachers who've managed to figure it out. They keep trying to challenge me, help me grow. It's super obnoxious, so let's keep it as hushed as possible. I don't want my peers knowing the tough foster kid who takes down bullies and makes walls explode one handed is a closet nerd."